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10PROGRAM ADMISSIONAdmission to the doctoral program in Education Leadership is a competitive process. Witheach cohort, the department receives more applications from qualified students than can beaccepted. Consequently, application materials should be carefully prepared to present thestudent in the most positive light.A new doctoral cohort begins course work in the spring semester of even years. Doctoralstudents must apply to and be accepted by the A&M-Texarkana Scholars of Practice doctoralprogram.Applications for a new cohort open in January of odd years. Application materials are acceptedbetween January – August of odd years: application materials are due to the Office of GraduateStudies by August 31st. A list of current admission requirements and packet materials arelocated on the doctoral program website. Please be advised, completion of application packetcan take time. Applicants are encouraged to begin the application process early.Packet Review: The Office of Graduate Studies forwards completed application packets to theProgram Admissions Committee Chair for review in September by the Program AdmissionsCommittee. The Program Admissions Committee is composed of faculty members teachingcourses in Education Leadership. The committee reviews packets using a committee-approvedrubric focusing on quality of packet material presenting evidence that an applicant will besuccessful in the program. If the sum of rubric points falls within the accepted entrancerequirement range, then the committee will invite the student for an online interview.Interviews: End of September/beginning of October, Office of Graduate Studies contactsapplicants via email to participate in an online interview using an online platform. Theinterview is 15-20 minutes in length. The committee members score applicant interview usinga committee-approved rubric.Admission: At the conclusion of the process, the committee will recommend a cohort ofstudents for approval by the Office of Graduate Studies. The committee will also produce a listof “alternate” applicants depending on the number of qualified applicants.Notification: The Office of Graduate Studies will notify applicants in writing of theiradmission status the first week of November. Admission status will include the following:accepted, placed on list of alternates, or denied.Orientation: Notifications of acceptance will invite those admitted to an orientation held on aSaturday in November. It is highly encouraged all admitted attend the orientation.

11DEGREE PLANGeneral GuidelinesAll doctoral degree plans must include the coursework equivalent of a master's degreeprogram. This requirement, in addition to the 60 semester credit hours (SCH) of doctoralcoursework, equals a minimum 90 semester credit hours of post-baccalaureate coursework.Time Limitation for DegreeAll degree requirements beyond the master's must be completed within ten calendar yearsfrom the date of admission to the doctoral program. No coursework beyond the master'sdegree that is over ten years old at the time the doctoral degree is conferred can be usedtoward the doctoral degree.Transfer CreditWith advisor recommendation and program coordinator approval, a student may transfer amaximum of 12 SCH from another regionally accredited institution of higher education towardthe doctoral degree. However, only courses for which the student received a grade of "B" orbetter may be transferred, and all courses transferred must have been completed within 10years of completion of the doctoral degree. Substitutes for core courses may not be transferredinto the degree plan. All transferred courses within the 12 SCH cognate must fit within thestudent’s cognate choice. Approved courses will be posted on the degree plan. Under nocircumstances may a student transfer more than 12 hours toward the doctoral degree.Competency-Based CreditsStudents may apply for competency-based credits based on work experience, outside trainings,and other approved life experiences. Credit is granted based on documentation (e.g. portfoliocompleted by the student) and reviewed by the Office of Graduate Studies and Research,program coordinator, and the student's advisor.Research ToolsAll research tool courses must be taken in sequence and completed prior to enrolling indissertation study (EDLD 693).

12COURSE SEQUENCEThe required courses for completion are provided below. Students are expected to takecourses (with the exception of the 12 SCH cognate and dissertation work) with theirassigned cohort.Information contained in this document is subject to additional provisions found in the A&M Texarkana University Catalog.CourseTitleHoursEDLD 611EDLD 612EDLD 622EDLD 623Doctoral SeminarStrategic ManagementExecutive CommunicationPublic Administration, Marketing and PR3333EDLD 624EDLD 625OrEDLD 632EDLD 650EDLD 662EDLD 663Applied Instructional TechnologiesField Study in National and International Cultural PerspectivesHUMA 693. Field Study in US Cross-Cultural DiversityContemporary Issues in Education LeadershipInvestigating Phenomena Using Quantifiable Data#Methods of Inquiry (Qualitative Research) #Statistical Methods in Education Leadership#3333333EDLD 661EDLD 670Dissertation Prospectus Development#Critical Conversations and Team Building33EDLD 690EDLD 691EDLD 694EDLD 698EDLD 693Executive Instructional Leadership of the Education Community *Leadership Internship *Executive Instructional Leadership*Administrative Leadership (Finance) *Dissertation Research** (12 SCH total required)33333* A&M-Texarkana superintendent certification courses. These courses accepted as cognate courses or may bereplaced by courses in another cognate area as approved by major advisor.** May be repeated as needed until dissertation is successfully completed. Only 12 hours of completion of thiscourse may count toward the degree plan. Beyond 12 SCH, credit will not count toward degree.#Research tool coursesThere is a residency requirement for student’s completing doctoral studies at A&M-Texarkana.Due to the hybrid course format used within this program, students meet the residencyrequirement of at least 48 credit hours to be completed at Texas A&M University-Texarkana.

13COMPREHENSIVE EXAMINATIONPrerequisitesCourses. The student must complete core courses, and completed approximately 24 credit hours,as approved by the student's doctoral advisor.Education Leadership doctoral committee chooses the time. All students are required to sitfor the written examination based on the schedule provided by the program. Oral examinationswill be scheduled based on student performance on the written examination and therecommendation of the student’s advisor.Registration for the Doctoral Comprehensive ExaminationWhen? Specific dates for the doctoral comprehensive examination are announced by thedepartment approximately two months in advance. Eligible students in each cohort are notifiedby email of their eligibility. Students no longer aligned with their original cohort must contacttheir advisor to inquire or register for comps.Schedule of Examinations and Content Areas TestedThe Comprehensive Examination for the Doctorate of Education in Education Leadership will beadministered during the time assigned by the departmental EDLD doctoral committee. Theexpectations of each content area examination will extend the course material expectations byrequiring students to synthesize, connect, and construct knowledge across other content areas andto their own professional practice as a result of the entire program of study. Faculty from eachcontent area, in consultation with the major advisor, will determine pass/fail performance.Students must pass ALL content areas in order to be eligible to advance to candidacy.Content areas addressed on the exam:Contemporary Issues in Education LeadershipDiverse Perspectives in Education LeadershipExecutive LeadershipStrategic Leadership and ChangePublic Relations and MarketingProgram Evaluation and Educational ChangeApplied Instructional TechnologiesEvaluation of ExaminationEach written response is rated as either a pass or fail. Students must pass all content areas ofthe Comprehensive Examination. Individual faculty, in consultation with the committee chair,will determine the rating for each content area. The major advisor will report the results of theexamination to the student. If a student is unsuccessful on the comprehensive examination, thestudent will not be allowed to take any dissertation courses and will be exited from theprogram.

14An applicant who does not pass the qualifying examinations may be suspended from thedoctoral program, or upon the recommendation of the advisory committee, may be permitted torepeat the written examination a maximum of one time. Under no circumstances will a studentbe allowed to take the written examination, or any part thereof, more than two times.Oral Comprehension ExamIf a student is not successful on the written comprehensive examination, the student will berequired to take Oral Comprehensive Exams.Content of the oral examination. The student should defend or expand on what the studenthas written on the comprehensive examination and is expected to provide appropriatebibliographical information to support references to research. However, questions are notlimited to what the student has written.Evaluation. At the end of the oral examination, the major advisor and any member of thefaculty participating in the oral examination deliberate on the outcome of the examination. Ifthe outcome is unfavorable, faculty participants decide what options, if any, the student maypursue. If a student is unsuccessful completing the comprehensive examination process, thestudent will not be allowed to take any dissertation courses and will be exited from theprogram.Final Report of Doctoral Comprehensive ExaminationThe major advisor will notify the Office of Graduate Studies and Research upon the student’scompletion of written examinations and will notify the doctoral coordinator of the student’sreadiness to receive a dissertation chair.

15RECOMMENDED TIME FRAMETimetableFigure 1 shows the general progression of doctoral work. The Scholars of Practice programallows students complete rigorous doctoral study while maintaining full-time employment as aprofessional. Candidates may complete the entire program in as few as 3 ½ years with transfer orcompetency credit. The average time for completion is four years. Candidates have up to tenyears to complete program requirements.Figure 1: Progression of Doctoral WorkCognate Courses completed before or after Cohort courses (Coreand Research Tools), 2 semestersCoreCourses:4semestersComprehensive ExamsResearchToolscourses: 2semesters*Dissertationhours: 4semesters*Please see the dissertation manual for details regarding the overall dissertation process.

16Minimal ProgressThe academic progress requirements for all doctoral students include a minimum grade pointaverage (GPA) of 3.0 plus timely completion of department and program requirements (e.g.,courses, comprehensive exams, dissertation requirements). In addition, students earn “S”(satisfactory) indicating satisfactory progress for 12 semester credit hours (SCH) of dissertationwork (EDLD 693). Receipt of two consecutive “U’s” (unsatisfactory progress) is considered afailure to meet minimum academic progress.Doctoral students are required to register for 6 SCH for four consecutive semesters to completecore courses. The second summer students are not required to enroll in courses so students mayprepare for comprehensive exams. Following comprehensive exams, students are required toenroll in a minimum of 3 SCH during fall and spring semesters until program completion.Summer enrollment for dissertation is not required but decision to register should be inconsultation with dissertation chair.Failure to meet the minimum academic progress milestones will result in a review of thestudent’s progress to date by a committee to include program coordinator, program faculty,college dean and, if appropriate, dissertation committee. A letter will be sent to the studentoutlining the specific requirements to be met and the timeline within which to satisfy them.Actions may occur, including the placement of an enrollment hold on the student’s account untilspecific conditions outlined in the letter are satisfied. The committee could also recommendtermination of the student from doctoral degree program.

17STUDENT RESOURCESMajor Advisor's RoleUpon admission to the department's EDLD doctoral program, the doctoral coordinator assignsa faculty member to serve as the student's major advisor. The major advisor: Provides general information regarding the department and the doctoral program to thestudent as needed, and Assists with the student’s degree plan.The major advisor and the student’s doctoral committee chair do not serve the same purposeand may not be the same faculty member. Once the student identifies a dissertation chair, thechair of this committee assumes the major advisory responsibility of the student’s majoradvisor, and the initial advisor is no longer responsible for advising duties. Students will beguided in establishing a dissertation chair and committee.Dissertation Committee ChairUpon completion of residency and passing comprehensive exams, the department will supportstudents in identifying a dissertation chair from faculty. This process includes identifyingfaculty with similar research interests. The chair will guide the student in securing a committeethat will guide him/her through the dissertation process.Upon rare occasions, it is in the best interest of students and faculty members to reassigndissertation chairs to better match research needs. If necessary, a student may appeal to thedoctoral program coordinator to request reassignment to a new dissertation chair. If deemedappropriate, then the student will be reassigned.Dissertation CommitteeThe committee is composed of three to five faculty members, one of whom is an EducationLeadership faculty member. The remaining member(s) will be from the education departmentand a member from outside the department. Upon approval of the Dissertation Chair, ProgramCoordinator and Office of Graduate Studies, one of the members of the committee may be apracticing superintendent, school leader, or other educational executive that hold

TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY-TEXARKANA COLLEGE OF ARTS, SCIENCES, AND EDUCATION OFFICE OF GRADUATE STUDIES Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Education Leadership . The Office of Graduate Studies forwards completed application packets to the Program Admissions Committee Chair for review in September by the Program Admissions . Texarkana .